Return to the Past
by watrfairie
Summary: Leslie Alexa Donnelly is an outgoing girl who is in the choir for her school play of the Phantom of the Opera. During the production she falls and hits her head and is transported back in time to the reign of the real Phantom of the Opera...[Rest inside]
1. Chapter 1

Return to the Past

Leslie Alexa Donnelly is an outgoing girl, who is in the choir for her school play of the Phantom of the Opera. During the production, she falls and hits her head and is transported back in time to the reign of the real Phantom of the Opera. When the Phantom discovers her, will he be able to face what she could be?

Disclaimer: I do not own anything you recognize from Andrew Lloyd Webber's Phantom of the Opera, on which this story is based off of. Everything that you do not recognize and is original belongs to me.

Chapter 1

"Five, six, seven, eight! Kick, pirouette, kick, spin! Kick, spin, kick run jump!" Mrs. Carmichael called out from the auditorium. The choir was practicing one of the harder ballet numbers of the new school play, The Phantom of the Opera. "Again ladies, let's do it again! Five, six, seven, eight!" Mrs. Carmichael watched, making sure that everyone stayed on time. "Miss Donnelly, you are ahead of the beat! Slow down girl, you are going to fast!" she called out.

"Sorry Mrs. Carmichael, I'll fix it." Leslie replied to her teacher. Leslie Alexa Donnelly was a seventeen year old with golden brown hair in ringlets down to her mid back, green eyes, and rosy red lips. She was five feet four inches tall, had naturally tan skin, slender and physically fit. Leslie was generally an outgoing girl who loved to play sports as well as dance and act; she was good at everything she did.

"Okay girls, let's do it again. This will be the last time if you do it right!" Mrs. Carmichael said. They had already gone over this number of the show ten times, so everyone was tired. "From the top; five, six, seven, eight!"

"Leslie, wait up!" a girl called, running after her.

"Hey Heidi." Leslie said, smiling at the girl. "What's up?"

"Oh nothing. I just wanted to say that you are a really great dancer, no matter what Mrs. Carmichael says." Heidi said.

"Thanks, but I probably have to work twice as hard as everybody else. I'm exhausted!"

"Yeah right, you're a natural at this!" Heidi exclaimed, giving Leslie a huge smile, and received one in return.

"She may be a decent dancer," another voice said from behind the two girls. "But I'm a better singer because I was the one who got the part of Christine!"

"No way! Leslie is probably way better than you; she is the best at everything else." Heidi exclaimed, whirling around to face the newcomer.

"Oh yeah, so why didn't she audition for an actual part then?" the girl retorted, glaring at Leslie. "You know what; I bet you can't sing at all, can you?"

"Why do you care Maggie, you've never cared before whether or not I could sing." Leslie asked.

"Because I know that someone is better than you at something, and that someone is me! It also means that you are not perfect!" Maggie snarled, delighted in herself.

Rolling her eyes, Leslie responded, "I'm not perfect you know. I get B's in school, and I make mistakes in sports all the time."

Smirking, Maggie turn3d at the next street. "You can sing, can't you Leslie?" Heidi asked hesitantly.

"Yes, but I don't like singing." Leslie sighed. "I get all flustered when I sing in front of people by myself."

"Well, I guess you'll just have to get over that won't you!"

"Um, someday I guess. Why?" Leslie asked suspiciously.

"Because you are the best at everything; everyone knows it!" Heidi said, sounding like it was common knowledge.

"No, I'm not! I don't sing, and I can't play basketball, so I'm not the best! Can we drop this now; I don't want to talk about it anymore."

"Sure." Heidi said understandably. "So, do you think that we are going to be ready for opening night next weekend?"

"What, it starts next weekend?" Leslie exclaimed. "I don't know, nobody has all of their lines down yet, and some of the dances are still shaky. Plus Mike is having troubles hitting his falsetto notes for the song Music of the Night; honestly, I don't know if we can pull it off at all! I mean, we have been working on this for three months!"

"I know, but we have to! Plus it's too much fun just to give up, and we already have every ticket sold!" Heidi exclaimed.

"Are you serious?" Leslie said shocked. "I didn't thin that anyone would want to see a high school play."

"Wow, how many people came back at you old school in Colorado?"

"Like only our parents. I keep forgetting how different it is here in Orlando. Florida in general is different." Leslie said. "Well, this is my turn. I'll see you tomorrow at practice." she said, turning onto the street she lived on.

"Okay, thanks for walking home with me! Bye!" Heidi called to the retreating girl's back.

"Bye!"

"I'm home!" Leslie called from the foyer of her home. "Where are you dad?"

"I'm in the back kiddo! Why don't you get something to drink and come outside with me?" Leslie's dad called back to her, obviously from outside.

"Okay, just let me go put my books down in my room and change." she called back, then turned the corner and ran the stairs. Turning left at the top, Leslie walked to the end of the hall and into her room. She had a nice room, quite spacious really, and she had her own conjoining bathroom and walk in closet, both of which doors were on either side of the door she just entered from. Her room was L shaped, going straight out in front of her for about nine feet by ten feet, turning right to wrap around the back of the house for about sixteen feet by twelve feet. Walking into the smaller part of her room was her work area, which was where her desk, bookshelves and computer were. After turning to the larger part of her room, at the end is a window seat/couch with an end table on either end, opposite the window seat is her dresser, and on the wall opposite the doors in the middle of the room is her double bed.

Putting down her school and dance bags, Leslie quickly changed and ran back downstairs to where her father was lounging on the lawn reading the newspaper. "Hey daddy!" she called, walking out the back sliding glass door.

"Hey kiddo, how was play practice?" her father asked, putting the paper down.

"It was tiresome. Mrs. Carmichael worked us to death! For a little while I was afraid that my legs were going to fall off from dancing so much!" Leslie replied, plopping down onto a chair next to her father.

"How is the show coming along? I understand that ya'll are going to open in a week, correct? Does everybody know their lines? What about the songs, can the lead roles hit the high notes?" Leslie's father asked.

"Um, they are working on it. We still have a ways to go before we open though. I just hope that we will be ready on time. I think that Mrs. Carmichael is going to die if we aren't." Leslie said, laughing a little.

"You who! Is anybody home?" a voice came from inside the house, sounding to be around the front door.

"Out here Sandra!" Leslie's father called.

"Oh there you are!" said a woman, Sandra, as she appeared at the back sliding glass door. "I was hoping that you would be home Jim; oh, hello Leslie! Did you have a pleasant day at school?"

"Yeah, sure. Um, I have some homework that I want to get done before dinner dad, so is it okay that I go do it now?" Leslie asked, getting a little uncomfortable around the appearance of Sandra.

"Of course! No snacking though, Sandra is making a home cooked meal for us, so I don't want you to spoil your appetite." her father said.

"Sure, whatever you say." Leslie grumbled, walking back into the kitchen, through the living room, and up the stairs to her room.

"So, how was your day baby?" Sandra said, sitting down on Jim's (Leslie's father) lap.

"Hecktick, as usual. We just can't seem to find any good lawyers around here, so the firm is getting pretty desperate. They keep loading me down with a ton of new cases for me to defend, but I can't handle it on my own. Sometimes I wish that I hadn't gotten transferred to this branch; there is almost too much work!" Jim said.

"Well, I'm glad that you moved here, or else I wouldn't have met you! Come on, I want to take you out to dinner next Friday night to celebrate our six month anniversery." Sandra said.

"Oh no, I can't! Leslie's show opens that night, and I promised that I would go. How about next Saturday? She won't mind if I don't come to every performance."

"Saturday it is then, but I'll have to cancel my reservations…"

"Well if you already have reservations, I'm sure that Leslie won't mind if I go to her other performances, just as long as I go to at least one."

"Oh Jim, you are the greatest!" Sandra exclaimed. Leaning over, she kissed him, then got back up and went to the back sliding glass door. "I'll pick you up at seven, so don't worry about driving; and trust me; you are going to just love this place! Bye baby!"

"Bye Sandra." Jim called after her.

"Oh Jim, you are the greatest!" Sandra exclaimed. Leaning over, she kissed him, then got back up and went to the back sliding glass door. "I'll pick you up at seven, so don't worry about driving; and trust me; you are going to just love this place! Bye baby!"

"Bye Sandra."

Leslie had been sitting at her window seat, watching and listening to the conversation. _How could he miss my opening night? How can he be dating that monster of a woman? Especially so soon after mom died! I can't believe him!_ She thought to herself, disgusted with her father, and fuming hatred towards his new girlfriend. Getting up, Leslie walked over to her desk and started her homework.

"Leslie, will you help me set the table please?" Sandra called up the stairs.

"Leslie, come set the table!" Jim demanded. A minute later, Leslie trudged down the stairs, through the living room; and into the kitchen. "Help Sandra set the table please."

"Sure, whatever." Leslie mumbled. She walked by the table which was against the wall to the right, opposite the sliding glass back door, to the opposite end of the kitchen where the U shaped counter was. Pulling out three sets of dishes and silver wear, Leslie set the table.

"Leslie, are you ill? You have hardly touched your plate!" Leslie's dad inquired halfway through his own meal.

"Oh Jim, let the girl be. I don't mind that she doesn't like my cooking. I can hardly blame the girl; she has never had a real home cooked meal before." Sandra chided.

"My mother would cook every night! She was a great cook! Dad, how can you let her say that?" Leslie cried.

"Leslie Alexa, you will apologies this instant! That was uncalled for, and you know it!" her father commanded.

"It's okay Jim; she hasn't had a woman in her life to teach her manners, so I guess I'll help her if you want." Sandra said smoothly.

"That would be great; there is only so much I can do." Jim grinned at his girlfriend.

"What; no way! My mother taught me my manners just fine!" Leslie exclaimed, standing up.

"Young lady, you will apologies this instant!" Jim yelled at his daughter.

"No, I will not apologies! She has insulted my mother, and you! I hate her, and I will have nothing to do with her!" Leslie said as she ran up to her room.

"Get back here!" Jim called after her. "Leslie Alexa, if you don't get your tail in here in three seconds, you will be grounded; and you will not be allowed to perform in the play!"

"Jim, calm down. I think you are taking this too hard. I understand; she doesn't want me to take her mom's place." Sandra said, calming him down. "I'll go up and talk to her later. Grounding her was smart, just let her stay in the show, they have been practicing for too long."

"You're right, you always are." He said, getting up to clear Leslie's plate. "Dinner was marvelous by the way.


	2. Chapter 2

Okay, here is a little quiz for anybody who thinks they are reading this thoroughly: What is Leslie's middle name? Hint for later on in the story: You are going to need to know it! Plese review, I really hope that you like this! Well, on with the story...

Chapter 2

"Okay everyone, quiet down now; I said quiet! That's better." Mrs. Carmichael said. "Now, we only have four more rehearsals left, so let's get to work! Mike and Maggie, I want to start off with the scene Music of the Night, so get into costume and I'll call places! Choir, I want you in the choir room going over some of the harder songs and dance steps. Promise me that you will actually work this time!"

"We promise!" they all said in unison.

"Now Carle, I want you, where is Carle?" Mrs. Carmichael asked looking around.

"I'm here! Sorry, my math teacher wanted me to stay after." Carle said from the auditorium door.

"Carle, I need you to make sure that the trap door opens and that the cushion is thick enough for Luke to jump on. Also, you need to finish programming the lights, and make sure that the chandelier will fall on cue."

"Yes ma'am." Carle said.

"Okay, now every one get to work!" Mrs. Carmichael said.

As everyone walked off in their separate directions, the choir hovered around Leslie, waiting for her to tell them what to do. "What's everyone staring at me for?" she asked puzzled.

"Leslie, would you take control of dance practice? You seem to be the only one who knows all the steps in order, even though you go too fast." Mrs. Carmichael asked.

"Sure, okay, you all know where the choir room is." Leslie said.

In the choir room, Leslie set up the CD player and put in the soundtrack. "Okay, I guess we should take it from the top." She said, pressing play on the machine.

For the next two in a half hour, they girls worked as hard as they could; determined to get every step right, so that Mrs. Carmichael wouldn't fuss at them again. During one of the breaks, one of the girls spoke up.

"Leslie, I think we should go over the songs. Would you lead us?"

"Yeah Leslie, you sing the solos and we'll back you up!" Heidi chimed in.

"Yeah!" a couple girls agreed.

"Let's do that!" a couple other girls said.

"I didn't know she could sing!" one girl put in.

"Um, I don't know the songs; maybe we should just listen to the CD and sing along." Leslie lied nervously.

"Oh come on Leslie," Heidi nagged. "I know you know them. This can be the way you beat Maggie!"

"Like she can beat Maggie; Maggie is the best singer in the school!" a girl named Jessica said. "She can't even beat me!"

"Just because you got the part of Meg, doesn't mean that you can sing." Heidi chided.

Exasperated, Leslie went over to the piano and started playing so that the girls would have to stop bickering, and start singing. Although the two girls did start to sing, they kept glaring daggers at each other.

A few minutes later, Mrs. Carmichael walked in and started fussing over why they weren't dancing. In order to avoid getting people in trouble, Leslie said that she wanted them to sing the songs while dancing so that they knew what step went to what word. Mrs. Carmichael seemed to buy it, and then told them that she would see them tomorrow, dismissing them to go home.

The next day, Mrs. Carmichael had the choir in the auditorium practicing, while the leads rehearsed in the choir room. They were able to get halfway through their dances before they had the first break. During the break, Mike came up to Leslie and started talking with her.

"Why didn't you audition for Meg? You are a great dancer." He said.

Leslie looked up from the homework she was working on. He was a tall boy at about five feet nine inches tall, with dark dirty blond hair down to the nape of his neck, and hazel eyes. He was also pretty strong, because he worked out and lifted waits. "Oh, hey Mike." She said, smiling up at him, and gestured for him to sit on the edge of the stage next to her. "Um, I don't like to sing." Leslie confessed once he was seated.

"Then why are you in the choir? I'm not saying that I'm upset that you are in the show, I…"

"Mike," Leslie interrupted, gigging to herself. "I like to sing, just not by myself. Plus we do more dancing than singing."

"Oh, okay." he said, understanding a little better. "Well, I better get back to practice. I almost can hit that high falsetto note." Picking up his phantom's mask, he went back to practice.

The next two practices were the two dress rehearsals before opening night. Everyone was getting nervous, so Mrs. Carmichael was going nuts trying to keep everyone under control. "Okay, Carle, I want you to run the lights while we run the show."

"Yes ma'am." Carle said, dashing up to the tech booth.

"Mr. Parker," Mrs. Carmichael said, addressing the band director. "Are your students ready to accompany us?"

"Sure as shootin' they are!" Mr. Parker replied.

"Good, good; now everyone go get into costumes and help each other with make-up. I'm going to call first cue in half an hour, so be ready backstage. And no feeding today! If you forget a line, just improvise!" she called after the backs of the retreating cast.

For a first dress rehearsal, the show didn't go too badly, but there were still some people forgetting lines. As expected, some of the light cues weren't on time, or just didn't work. The chandelier fell too soon, and the trap door opened too late, so Luke ended up hitting the stage with a thud, and then falling through, yelling in shock.

Some of the dancers forgot when to enter on some of the numbers, but were able to get most of the dance steps. Mike, with great joy, hit all of his notes successfully. Maggie on the other hand, squeaked on half of hers. Some of the props were missing, so some of the stage hands got fussed at until they were found; and there was lots of chatter backstage. After Mrs. Carmichael finished her list of things to work on, and stopped fussing, she let them take a break before running the show again.

The second run went much smoother than the first. All the props were in the right places, and the scene changes were quick and quiet. Mike once again hit all of his notes, but Maggie was still struggling. Everything went well over all, and the cast was told not to be late for the last rehearsal the next day.

"Hey, Maggie!" Leslie called, running down the aisle.

"What do you want chorus girl?" Maggie sneered.

"Whoa, I just wanted to tell you to break a leg tomorrow night." Leslie replied, coming to a halt and putting her hands up in defense.

"Yeah right; and any ways, I don't need luck."

"Sure; later then." Leslie said, walking to the dressing room to change for the finale rehearsal.

When Leslie got home, she found that her father and Sandra were making dinner. Well, really it was Sandra cooking, and her father playing around. _What is with him? Ever since he met that wench, he has been acting so strangely!_ She thought to herself. Turning around, she tried to sneak out of the living room and up to her room without being seen, but she ended up tripping over one of Sandra's shoes that was in the middle of the floor, and went sprawling onto the floor, hitting her head on the coffee table.

"Oh, hey kiddo, dinner will be ready in a few minutes." Her father said, not even noticing how much pains she was in. Putting her hand up to the back of her head to make sure there was not blood, Leslie started to freak out when she pulled her hand away with a few drops on her finders.

"Dad, she could have killed me!" she yelled, sitting up. "Her shoes are not supposed to be in the middle of the floor! Did you even hear how hard I hit my head?" She was crying at this point, because it seemed to her that her father didn't care what happened to her anymore; and that all he cared about what Sandra. "Oh, and do you even care that I'm bleeding?" She held up her hand to show the blood. Her father and Sandra looked at it, and then dismissed it.

"There is hardly enough there to say that you are bleeding." Her father said.

"Go wash your hands." Sandra commanded. "I won't have you getting your blood on the furniture, no matter how little there is of it."

Shocked, Leslie scrambled up and ran up to her room. "Should I go talk to her?" asked her father.

"Let her be, she'll come down sooner or later. She does have to eat after all." Sandra told him.

"I just hope that she is okay with my missing the show tomorrow night."

"You still haven't told her?" Jim shook his head. "Well, she'll find out tomorrow, but I promise, it'll be worth it!"

I know." Jim said, smiling at Sandra.


	3. Chapter 3

Okay, I hope that ya'll are liking this, because I'm working hard on this. Please review for me! I hope to get five review per chapter; you don't have to say all praises, I would love some critisism as well, as long as it's not really mean. Well, on with the story...

Chapter 3

"Quiet; quiet please! Everyone stop talking!" Mrs. Carmichael shouted, trying to get everyone's attention. Slowly, everyone stopped talking. "Thank you; everyone gather 'round. Okay, now we have all worked very hard for the last three months. I guess I'm supposed to say that tonight will go by with no problems, but I just hope we get through the show. Carle, make sure you know when to cue the lights, and the trap door!"

"Yes Mrs. Carmichael, I know when to do it." Carle assured her.

"I have made sure that all the props are all in the right places, so don't move them!" Mrs. Carmichael continued. "Mike, I'm sure that you will hit all of your notes, so don't worry about it. Maggie, I'm going to play the soundtrack underneath you, so if you can't get to your notes, just drop out. Can you do that?"

"But Mrs. Carmichael, that's not fair!" Maggie protested.

"Well, would you rather me have someone singer under you? I didn't think so. Chorus girls, if you forget a step, just look at Leslie. That is why I put her in the front in every number. Leslie, I'm sure you will do just fine, you are a wonderful dancer."

"Thank you Mrs. Carmichael." Leslie said a little embarrassed.

"Well, I guess that's it! Break a leg everyone! Oh, Please, don't talk while backstage! I'll see you all after the show!"

As they watched their teacher retreat into the auditorium, everyone immediately began talking. "I thought she said no talking!" someone shouted over the noise, immediately stopping the talking.

Ten minutes later, they all heard Mrs. Carmichael's voice announce the beginning of the show, which was the cue for everyone to take their places for the auction.

Leslie was one of the people in the first scene, so when the curtain went up, and just before the lights came up, she stole a glance around the auditorium, and saw that her father had not changed his mind about his dinner with Sandra. _My gosh! Their anniversary isn't even until Sunday! He knew I wanted him here, so why couldn't he have missed the last show instead of the first?_ She thought angrily, but her train of thought was cut off as the auctioneer started talking.

Auctioneer: Sold. Your number, sir? Thank you. Lot 663, then, ladies and gentlemen: a poster for this house's production of "Hannibal: by Chalumeau. Turning her attention back on the show, she quickly forgot all her anger and became deeply involved in her role, as if Leslie never existed; only the ballerina she was playing.

Everything was going fabulously. The auction went with no problem. Maggie did end up dropping out for the high B in Think of me, and the high E in Phantom of the Opera, rather reluctantly. Mike hit has long falsetto note with no problem as well in Music of the Night. The kiss between Maggie and Luke in All I Ask of You, almost didn't happen, because they had never practiced it.

_Wow,_ Leslie thought to herself watching._ That was a little long! I wonder if they like each other? _Before they knew it, it was time for the second act to start. Everyone was hurrying to get to their places for the masquerade scene. Leslie was up at the top of the stairs casually talking with some friends for the scene, until the phantom entered, when she would hurry down the stairs along with Christine and Raoul.

Christine: "Think of it! A secret engagement! Look-your future bride! Just think of it!"

Raoul: "But why is it secret? What have we to hide?"

Maggie and Luke sang, standing up at the top of the stairs, next to Leslie.

Christine: "Please, let's not fight…"

Raoul: "Christine, you're free!"

Christine: "Wait till the time is right…"

Raoul: "When will that be? It's an engagement, not a crime! Christine, what are you afraid of?"

Christine: "Let's not argue…"

Raoul: "Let's not argue…"

Christine: "Please pretend…"

Raoul: "I can only hope I'll…"

Christine: "You will..."

Both: "…understand in time…"

All: "Masquerade! Paper faces on parade! Masquerade! Hide your face, so the world will never find you!"

The cast was now dancing around the stage again singing.

All: "Masquerade! Every face a different shade! Masquerade! Look around-there's another mask behind you! Masquerade! Burning glances, turning heads…masquerade! Stop and stare at the sea of smiles around you! Masquerade! Grinning yellows, spinning reds…masquerade! Take your fill-let the spectacle astound you!"

Suddenly the music stopped and everyone stopped singing. Mike, playing the phantom, walked to the top of the steps. Everyone shied away from him. Christine and Raoul, or really Maggie and Luke, ran down the stairs, with Leslie just in front of them. Getting irritated because Leslie wasn't moving fast enough, Maggie plowed right past her. Losing her balance because Maggie had rammed into her shoulder, Leslie toppled head over heals down the stairs, which made Maggie lose her balance making her slide down the stairs. Thinking that they would just get up, Mike went on with his lines.

Phantom: "Why so silent, good messieurs? Did you think that I had left you for good? Have you missed me, good messieurs? I have written you an opera!"

As he was singing, Mike had slowly descended the stairs. When he got to the bottom, he realized that Leslie and Maggie were still on the floor, and that Leslie was now lying at his feet. Kneeling down quickly, he tried to get her to stand up. "Leslie, are you okay?" he asked.

"Forget her, she's fine!" someone hissed, thinking that she had pretended to fainted at the sight of the phantom. "Just get on with the show!'

"Leslie, get up. Did you sprain your ankle or something?" Mike continued to ask. He shook her by the shoulders for a little more emphasis. He glanced over to Maggie to see that Luke was trying to get her to stand up as well. Looking back down as Leslie, he realized that her eyes were not open. "Leslie, are you even awake?" Now thoroughly concerned, Mike shook her harder. "Leslie, can you hear me? Leslie! Somebody call an ambulance, she won't wake up!"

At his words, the entire auditorium went into frenzy. Some of the cast members ran up to see for themselves, others just stood in shock. Mrs. Carmichael sent one of the parents around her to find the school nurse, another to call for an ambulance, and yet another to find Leslie's father. She herself ran up to the stage to make sure that she was unconscious. "How did this happen?" Mrs. Carmichael demanded, staring at Mike.

"When I came on stage, all I saw was everyone shy away from me, like they were supposed too; Leslie was right in front of Maggie going down the stairs. You should ask her." Mike said, still looking at Leslie.

"Maggie, what happened? Why are you on the floor?" Mrs. Carmichael asked again.

"I don't know; the klutz probably tripped over her own feet. All I know is that she fell; pushing me and making me fall as well! I think that I broke my leg!" Maggie complained, obviously angry that Leslie had made her fall, and had stopped the show.

"Um, Mrs. Carmichael?" Luke spoke up hesitantly. "Mrs. Carmichael, while Maggie and I where going down the stairs, I felt Maggie run into Leslie. I think she lost her balance, making both of them fall."

"Mrs. Carmichael, I can't find Jim Donnelly. I don't think that he is even here!" the mother that was sent to find Leslie's father said.

"Thank you Mrs. Robinson. I'll try and find his cell phone number in a minute. Now where is that nurse?" Mrs. Carmichael asked.

"I'm right here. Why was I called?" Nurse Armstrong asked, walking up on stage.

"I think I broke my leg! The twit made me trip!" Maggie cried from where she was sitting a few feet away.

"Okay Maggie, let me have a look." Nurse Armstrong said walking over to her. Inspecting Maggie's ankle, she couldn't tell what had happened. "My advice is to go to the hospital when the ambulance gets here, and have some x-rays taken. Anybody else need me?"

"Yes, Leslie Donnelly is unconscious." Mrs. Carmichael said.

"I'm sorry; there is nothing that I can do for her. She will have to go to the hospital. Where are the girl's parents?"

"We can't find Leslie's father, and Maggie's parents are away. She is staying with the Andersons if I remember correctly. Has anyone informed them?" Mrs. Carmichael asked.

"They didn't come." Maggie told her. "They were expecting me to drive myself home."

"Did someone call for an ambulance?" and EMT said from the auditorium door.

"Yes, we have two girls that need to go to the hospital. One has a possibly broken ankle, and the other is unconscious." Mrs. Carmichael replied.

"Okay, if you will come with us, assuming that you are in charge; you can fill out all the paper work." The EMT said.

"Coming through please!" another EMT said coming in with two gurneys.

"Just hold on Leslie, you'll be okay." Mike said to her as the two men lifted her onto the gurney.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Walking onto the stage from the left wing, Dustin started towards the piano across stage, when he noticed something crumpled on the middle of the stage. Walking closer, he saw that it was a girl about his age. Kneeling down, he turned her over on her back. Brushing the hair out of her face, he was sure that she was only a year younger than him. _Who is this girl? She looks really familiar; and pretty! _He thought to himself.

Taking the girl by the shoulders, he gently shook her in order to wake her. Seeing her eye lashes flutter, he stopped and waited. Moaning, the girl sat up, looking around blurrily. "Where am I? Oh my head." She moaned, putting her head in her hands. Looking around again, she saw Dustin next to her, looking rather concerned. "Oh, hello. Um, where am I?" she asked, a little startled at seeing him.

"Mademoiselle, why were you asleep on the stage?" Dustin asked. "Are you alright? You look to be in pain. What happened?"

"Whoa, one question at a time! Um, to answer all of your questions at one time, I have no idea. All I remember is you waking me up. So, where am I?" she asked again.

"Mademoiselle, you are on the stage of the Opera Populaire, the grandest opera house, in Paris France." Dustin replied, gesturing around to emphasize his words. "May I ask another question?" The girl nodded. "Okay, so you have no clue what happened to you, or where you are, well, not anymore that is, but do you at least know who you are?"

The girl looked at him, and then down at her lap. Dustin lifted her chin with his hand, and whipped away her tears. "It's okay. I'll help you remember! My name is Dustin Alexander Lefevre. I'm an actor here, but I also help out in the stables or whatever they need me for when I'm not on stage."

"The stables?" the girl asked.

"Yeah, you know, where they keep the horses we use in the shows?" Dustin said.

"I know what stables are, I just didn't think that an opera house would have one." She said.

"Well, why not? What else would we use?"

"Oh, I don't know! It just seems odd to me."

"That is okay. Well, I guess we should tell someone you are here, and find something to call you. Are there any names that you like, or can you not remember any?

The girl thought for a minute, then spoke up. "There is something about the name Alex…Alexa! It just sounds so familiar!"

"Well then, Alexa it is; and it definitely suits you. A pretty name for a pretty girl." Alexa blushed at that remark. She looked at him and tried to drill into her head what he looked like so that she would at least know someone. He was well built, muscular because of working wit horses, hand dark dirty blond hair cropped to the middle of his ears, just long enough that he had to wipe it out of his eyes. He had hazel colored eyes, which were very nice to look at. When he stood up, Alexa saw that he was tall, maybe five feet nine inches. Noticing that he had his hand out, Alexa snapped back from her thoughts and took it. Helping her up, Dustin smiled to himself.

"First, I'll take you to see the managers, the Messieurs Firmin and Andre, to see what they think we should do about you." Dustin started, leading her off the stage to the doors in the back of the auditorium. "After that, I guess we should get you cleaned up; you um, might want to get a new dress."

"Why, what's wrong with the one I have on?" Alexa said, looking at what she had on. The neck line came up under her chin, and the hem came to just above her ankles, displaying ballet toe shoes, also, it had long sleeves to her wrists. The color was a deep red, not a very pretty dress, and obviously meant for dancing in. "Isn't this what everybody wears?"

"Um, not anymore." Dustin said, laughing a little. "That style went out five years ago; but the hem, I have never see one so high!" He was making an effort not to look at her ankles.

Hearing a knock at the door, Andre got up from his desk to open it. Upon doing so, he saw one of his juvenile actors accompanied by a young girl about his age. "Ah, come in Monsieur Lefevre! What a pleasant surprise; what brings you down to the office? Showing your lady friend around I presume?

"Not exactly Monsieur Andre, but it is she who brings me here." Dustin replied.

"Please, sit down Mademoiselle." Monsieur Firmin said, indicating a chair. Before Alexa took the chair, she looked at Dustin, who was still holding onto her arm, for assent, which he gave by nodding his head and leading her to it.

"Now, Dustin, what exactly do you mean?" Monsieur Firmin asked, sitting back down behind his desk, as well as Monsieur Andre, leaving Dustin the only one still standing.

"Well Messieurs, I was going to the theater to practice one of the songs for the upcoming show, when I saw something crumpled on the stage." He began to recite the events that had just happened. "Messieurs, Alexa, that is what she wants to be called; she doesn't know who she is! She had no recollection of how she got here, where she came from, or anything! I brought her here thinking that one of you would know what to do with her, or if maybe somebody had seen her enter." Dustin finished.

"A smart idea young man, but I doubt anyone has. Well, Mademoiselle, Alexa was it?" Monsieur Andre asked. Alexa nodded. "Well my dear, I presume that you are a ballerina?" Alexa looked at him quizzically, then at Dustin.

"Sir, I told you, she doesn't remember." Dustin spoke up for her.

"Alright, well, assuming that she is, we should have Madame Giry look at her. I guess we could hear her sing as well, to see if se should be I the choir. Just take her to the dance studio to Madame Giry, and tell me how it goes later."

"Yes Monsieur." Dustin said, bowing politely. Walking over to the chair, he helped Alexa stand, and escorted her out of the office. Once the door was shut and they were around a corner, Dustin spoke. "You will have to forgive them; they are not the smartest men in Paris. Let's see, at this hour, Madame Giry will be just about ready to call a break from practice, so you won't have to wait.

Walking through the opera house, Alexa found that is was just a big maze, or so it seemed, and hoped she wouldn't get lost. After what seemed like forever, and after they had turned one to many corners, Dustin stopped in front of a door. Knocking first, he entered to find an older woman surrounded by at least thirty ballerinas. Upon his entering, all of the girls started giggling and talking to each other. When they noticed Alexa on his arm, slightly behind him, they all glared at her, obviously jealous.

"Ah, Monsieur Lefevre, what brings you down to my studio?" the older woman asked, noticing what the girls were all looking at.

"Madame Giry, "Dustin said, giving a polite bow. "May I speak with you in private?"

"Yes, of course. Girls, take a thirty minute break. I'll be back in a little while." Madame Giry said, walking to her office which was off of the studio; motioning for Dustin to follow. "Now, what do you need?" she said, closing the door behind them. Noticing Alexa, she gave a questioning glance to Dustin.

"She can stay, she is the reason I am here." He replied. He escorted Alexa to another chair in front of Madame Gily's desk, and recanted the story again. When he finished, Madame Giry was sitting behind her desk, looking from him, to Alexa, and back again.

"Very interesting story, but why have you brought her to me?" Madame Giry asked.

"Well, Messieurs Andre and Firmin think that she might be a dancer, hence her shoes, and thought that you could give her an audition. I don't know, but it might provoke her memory!" Dustin responded.

"All of my dancers sing; they are in the choir. Can this girl sing?"

"We were going to find out after she gets cleaned up. speaking of which, she needs new clothes, and a room to stay in. can you help her with that as well?"

"I'll see what I can do. Okay, Alexa was it? Come with me girl; let's see what you can do." Walking back out into the studio, Madame Giry started a simple dance number. Repeating it over, to make sure that Alexa saw, she asked her to copy her moves. "This is one of the dance numbers in the show Hannibal. We did that show about twenty years ago. I want you to follow me, and do what I do."

Alexa watched Madame Giry, and started to copy her. Pretty soon, she was able to do eight counts of eight, so Giry stopped to watch, motioning for Alexa to begin again. It was a beautiful dance, and Alexa enjoyed dancing it; but there was something familiar about it to her.

"Girl, clear your mind! Let the steps flow from one to another!" Giry called from where she was watching. "That's it, you are doing wonderfully!"

Pretty soon, the part that Alexa had just been taught was over, but she didn't stop. Something inside her just kept telling her to keep dancing, telling her body what move came next. Alexa was lost in her mind, remembering the dance from somewhere; and nothing mattered except executing the next step the steps were getting increasingly complicated, but Alexa never missed a beat.

"I thought you said she couldn't remember anything." Giry said, seemingly in a trance as she watched the mystery girl dance.

"That's what she told me." Dusting whispered. He was also lost in what he was seeing: the most beautiful girl that he had ever met, dancing the most beautiful dance he had ever seen.

"I am one of two who still knows those steps!" Giry gasped. "And I know that neither of us has taught them to anyone; where did this girl come from? _That's what I want to know. _Dustin thought. He had to figure out who this girl was, he just had too!

Suddenly, Alexa stopped dancing. "My dear, why did you stop?" Girly asked, shocked at the sudden end to the mini-performance.

Alexa was looking about her in confusion. "I feel someone watching me, but nobody is here except for you!"

Just then, a handful of the ballerinas burst through the door. "Where did you learn to dance like that?" one asked. "What is your name? Are you going to dance here?" another asked. "Is Monsieur Lefevre your suitor?" a couple others asked giggling.

"That explains the unseen eyes." Giry sighted. "Girls, leave the poor girl alone! Back to practice!" Groaning, they obeyed. "Well, if she can sing, I will take her as a dancer. Heck, even if she can't if will take her! She is the best dancer since…" she never finished that sentence. "Girls, just keep practicing, I'll be back in a little bit. Meg, you are in charge, you know the dances as well as I do."

"Yes mother." one of the older girls said, stepping away from the wall bar.


	5. Chapter 5

Accidently uploaded chapter six before this one, so my monologue on why this took so long is in the next chapter. On with the story...

Chapter 5

"Wow, Sandra, this restaurant is fantastic! How in the world did you find it?" Jim asked, looking around the French restaurant that they were in.

"Oh, one of my friends is a chef here, so when she told me all about it, I knew that you would just love it." Sandra said casually. "Happy anniversary Jim!"

"Happy anniversary Sandra." he responded, clinking wine glasses with her. So, what other events do you have planned for the evening? Or are you not going to tell me and keep them as a surprise like you did our dinner location?"

"Oh, I thought that we could go see a movie, take a moon light horse and buggy ride though the park, and then go to a café for some coffee."

"Wow, you really thought this night out didn't you? I'm very impressed!"

"May I interrupt for a brief moment Monsieur, Madame?" the waiter said from the side of the table. "My name is Peter, and I'll be serving you tonight. Our specials for the evening are cordon blue and a potato and beef stew, with ­ for dessert. What may I interest you in?"

"I think that I will have the special." Jim said, closing his menu.

"I'll have the same." Sandra chimed in, doing the same.

"Your stews will be out shortly." Peter said.

Over their meals, the two adults talked about many things. One topic that Jim kept bringing up was Leslie. "I have never grounded her before. I don't know exactly how to enforce that."

"Oh, that is simple. Basically, she is not allowed to use the phone, she must come home straight after school, she is not allowed on the computer, she cannot watch TV; basically all she can do is come home, work on her homework, eat dinner, and talk with us." Sandra replied nonchalantly.

"I see. She is in prison except at home." Jim said grimly.

"If you wish to see it that way, then yes. The way I see it as is building character. My opinion is that you should have done this ages ago. The girl is too wild, you need to tame her, teach her proper manners."

"Your desserts." Peter said, putting down plates in front of them.

"This looks absolutely divine!" Jim said. After he took a spoon full, he said, "Give the chef my regards, this is excellent!"

"I will do so Monsieur."

"I'm so glad that you are liking this Jim." Sandra said smiling.

"I'm having a great time." Jim said, smiling back. Just then, his cell phone rang from his pocket. "Now who in the world could that be?" he asked himself bewildered. Pulling out his phone, he looked at the incoming number. "This is Leslie's teacher's cell phone number; why in the world would they be calling me? The show isn't over for another hour and a half, and Leslie said that she would get a ride home!"

"Jim," Sandra said, trying to comfort him. "Leslie is fine, I'm sure. She probably forgot about the ride, and was panicking."

"Okay, I guess that could be it." he said, putting the phone back in his pocket after hitting end without answering it. A few minutes later, the phone rang again. After hanging up again, the phone rang yet again. This time, he answered it, thinking that it was Leslie. "Yes Leslie, what did you forget?"

"Mr. Donnelly, is that you?" a woman's voice said from the other end.

"Mrs. Carmichael, why are you calling me? Shouldn't you be paying attention to the play right now? What is all that noise?" In the background, he could faintly hear the sounds of people talking and cars running, but that was all he could make out.

"Mr. Donnelly, I need you to meet us at the hospital…"

"What?" Jim interrupted her. "Why? What happened? Is Leslie okay? Where is she, where are you? Can I speak with her?"

"Slow down Mrs. Donnelly! There has been an accident. It would be easier to explain if you just met us at the hospital."

"Jim, what is it? Why do you look so white?" Sandra said, starting to get alarmed.

"Leslie is in the hospital!" Jim practically shouted. "Waiter, I need the bill! Now, my daughter is in the hospital!"

The waiter Peter went running into the back to get the bill, and then ran out almost hitting another waiter carrying a tray of drinks with the swinging door. "Here you are Sir; I hope your daughter gets better. You can pay up front if you wish."

"Thank you, I will." Jim said.

"Mr. Donnelly," Mrs. Carmichael said. "Mr. Donnelly, you have to calm down! Can you have someone drive you? I don't think that you are in a state to do so yourself."

"Yes, my girlfriend Sandra can do that. Sandra, go get the car while I pay the bill."

"Sure, I'll be right back." Sandra said, grabbing her purse and walking out the door to her car.

"I'll be right there; just don't let anything happen to my daughter!" Jim commanded in hysterics.

Running into the hospital, Jim almost collided with Mrs. Carmichael. "Where is Leslie; what happened; is she okay?" he asked all at once, getting his balance again.

"We are waiting for the doctors to come out and tell us, so just take a seat and calm down. Where is your girlfriend?" Mrs. Carmichael said, looking behind him.

"She went home, she hates hospitals." Jim replied, taking her advice. _Nice lady, ditching him like this. No wonder Leslie has been so distracted for the last couple of weeks. I bet that the two of them don't hit it off real well._ Mrs. Carmichael thought.

While they waited, Mrs. Carmichael recanted how the show had been going so well, until the second act when Leslie and Maggie fell down the stairs. Slowly, some of the kids from the show showed up at the hospital to see how either Maggie or Leslie was doing. Most of them were there for Maggie, because she was the only one who knew the lines, so she was the only one who could play Christine. When Mike showed up, nobody knew why he was there, because he just sat in a corner by himself.

About two hours later, the doors to the ER opened and a doctor came out. Everyone in the waiting room stood up, thinking that it was the doctor that they were waiting for. "Is there a Mrs. Carmichael here?" the doctor said, looking at the clipboard in his hands.

"Yes, I'm right here." Mrs. Carmichael said.

"Mrs. Carmichael, my name is Doctor Porter. I am happy to say that Maggie's ankle is not broken. She has a severe sprain, and it could take weeks to heal. I'm sorry that this took so long, there are just so many patients here." the doctor reported.

"What about the other girl I brought in here? Leslie Donnelly, is she okay?" Mrs. Carmichael asked.

"Leslie is my daughter, may I see her?" Jim asked anxiously.

"I'm sorry Sir, but I am not her doctor. I will send him or her out when they can though." Doctor Porter said.

"Can we see Maggie?" one of the girls asked from where she was standing. "Is she going to have to stay here over night?" one of the boys asked. "Is she going to be able to finish the play Mrs. Carmichael?" another girl asked.

"Yes, you may see her, and no, she will not be spending the night here. As for if she can act, she can not event walk, so I strongly suggest against it." the doctor said.

"But then we will have to postpone the rest of the show!" Jessica wailed.

"Hush, everyone, if you are quiet, you may go see Maggie. All of you have to be out of here in an hour though!" Mrs. Carmichael said.

After most of the cast had wondered back into the ER to find Maggie's room, Mrs. Carmichael, Mr. Donnelly, and Mike still left in the waiting room. "Mike, don't you want to see Maggie?" Mrs. Carmichael asked.

Looking up from his blank stair at the floor, Mike just shook his head. "I'm more concerned about Leslie." he mumbled. Another two hours passed before another doctor came out into the waiting room. By this time, it was past midnight, so they were the only ones left in the waiting room. "Mrs. Carmichael?"

"Yes? Are you the doctor taking care of Leslie Donnelly?" Mrs. Carmichael asked.

"Yes, my name is Doctor Ashley." she said, extending her hand.

"How bad is it? May I see her?" Mr. Donnelly asked, standing up again.

"I assume that you are her father?" He nodded. "I'm sorry Mr. Donnelly, but Leslie is in a comma. She is stable now, and we have taken numerous x-rays and CAT scans and MRI's, but we don't know why she is under. We are going to keep her under close watch, so you don't have to worry about her slipping any farther away than she is." She paused, making sure that what she was saying was sinking in, but not freaking them out too much. "I promise, Leslie will have the best doctors watching over her at all times. If anything in her condition changes, we will know the second it does. We have put her in her own room, so you are welcome to stay there with her until she recovers. I know that this is hard for you to believe and understand, but she will be okay."

Halfway through the doctor's speech, Mike had retreated into his corner again, Mr. Donnelly had collapsed into his chair, and Mrs. Carmichael was standing with her hands over her mouth.

"We are allowing her to have visitors, but no more than three at a time, so if you like, I can show you to her room."

"That would be nice." Mr. Donnelly mumbled, getting up again.

Once in her room, Leslie's father broke down completely, just seeing his daughter lying in the hospital bed, hooked up to all the machines, and totally helpless. It brought back too many bad memories from when her mom had died a few years ago from leukemia. She had been in the same physical and mental state that Leslie seemed to be in, for quite some time. "Oh my poor baby, my poor daughter!" he moaned, rushing over to her bed side.

_Oh Leslie, I'm so, so sorry! I wish I could have caught you when you fell or something!_ Mike thought to himself. He didn't dare go near her bed, because he knew that her father wanted to be alone, so he just stood against the wall next to the door. Mrs. Carmichael was also crying softly; she couldn't bear to look at one of her beloved students in such a bad predicament.

The next day, a car full of flowers and balloons were delivered to Leslie's room in the hospital, full of get well cards and chocolates. Mrs. Carmichael was sure to send coupons for coffee, because she knew that Mr. Donnelly wouldn't get much sleep from worrying too much. Leslie had plenty of visitors, but only one came every day.

"Good morning Mr. Donnelly." Mike said, walking into the room. He had some donuts and coffee with him from the hospital cafeteria.

"Hey Mike, how is you mother doing this morning?" Mr. Donnelly asked, sitting up in his chair.

"She is very concerned about Leslie, but other than that, she's doing pretty well. The doctors say that she should be able to come home in a few days."

"How is the new baby doing?"

"He is doing just fine; as healthy as can be, thank goodness."


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

"Here we are dear." Giry said, stopping in front of a door. "There is a wash tub inside, and some dresses in the wardrobe. Try a couple on and see what fits you best. When you are done, I'll have another look at you."

"Thank you." Alexa said softly.

"I'll wait out here if you wish." Dustin said. Alexa looked up at him and smiled. "We don't want you getting lost, so this way you don't have to find me."

"Thank you; that would be nice."

"Well then, if you are staying, just bring her by the studio again when she is ready."

Opening the door, Alexa gasped in shock. She had figured that the room would just be a bathroom, but it was an actual room. "Who's is this?" she asked.

"Yours for the time being." Giry replied. "It is one of the spare rooms. This hall is the wing for all the ballerinas, so naturally there are extras since we never have too many girls."

"Thank you!" Alexa said again. Stepping into her room, she found that it had a single bed pushed up against the far wall. The bathroom was immediately to the right of the door, with a washtub, toilet, and sink. Opposite each other and on the two walls adjacent to the bad, were a wardrobe and a long mirror. Across from the bad against the wall to the bathroom was a vanity table and stool for her to apply make-up and such. The walls were a dark navy blue with gold trim around the baseboard and the ceiling. The cover on the bed was a handmade quilt with pictures of girls dancing in a field. The wood on all the furniture was all maple.

Walking into the bathroom, Alexa saw that the tub, sink, and toilet, were all made of white porcelain. Turning on the water, Alexa went to the wardrobe to pull out a towel to dry off with, and found a collection of dresses awaiting her. Rummaging through them, she saw that they were mostly blues and reds, with a few greens and yellows. In the back of the wardrobe, she found a baby blue dress with white frill at the cuff of the sleeves and at the neck line. The bodice looked snug and form fitted, with the neck line scooping to about the middle of the bodice. The sleeves were quarter sleeves, and the skirt of the dress was sewn into a broad skirt with frill at the bottom which should brush the ground. The whole dress looked very Victorian, and perfect for the age. Going back into the bathroom, she pulled of her dress and slipped into the hot water.

Once out of the bath, Alexa dried off and started to put on the dress she had found, but couldn't quite fit it! Going back over to the wardrobe, she found what looked to be just the bodice of a dress that laced up in the back. Out of pure instinct, she knew she had to put it on in order to get the dress on, so she did. The corset was quite snug, which made it easy to slip into the dress. Walking over to the vanity, she saw that there was a little bit of make-up, probably left there for anyone to use. Shrugging, she applied some rogue to her cheeks and lips. Figuring she was decent, Alexa walked to the door and opened it. Sitting against the opposite was playing with a loop of string, was none other than Dustin, right where he said he'd be.

"Do you feel any better?" he asked, referring to her amnesia. "Um, don't you think you should put some shoes on? And maybe a cloak, not all of the opera house is as warm as this hall." Dustin suggested, smiling in spite of himself.

"Oh, right." Alexa said, blushing at her thoughtlessness. Stepping back into her room, she found a pair of black satin slipper-like shoes, and a dark blue cloak hanging on a coat rack in the corner at the head of her bed. Wrapping the cloak around her shoulders, and putting the shoes on, she walked back out into the hall. "Better?" she asked smiling.

"Much." Dustin replied, offering his arm to her once again. "So, I'm going to take you back to Madame Giry, and then you will probably sing for the managers. Where did you find that dress? It's very flattering for you."

"Oh, thanks." Alexa said, blushing again. "It was in the back of the wardrobe."

"It is a little out of date with fashion, but not too much that you look like a fool. In fact, I like this style much better than the new one. The new style has everyone showing too much of everything."

"Oh, well I'm glad you like it." They walked on in silence until they both heard Alexa's stomach rumble quite loudly.

"Ha! When was the last time you ate?" Dustin asked laughing.

"I don't remember." Alexa said weakly.

"Oh, right, forgot about that already. Sorry. Well, I think that Madame Giry can wait a while while we find you something to eat. Come on, I know the chef, and he has a soft spot for pretty girls who like good food." Dustin said, leading her down another hall.

Once in the kitchens, Dustin sat Alexa down on a stool and disappeared behind a wall of hanging pots and pans to find the chef. Moments later, Alexa heard a loud clatter and a shout, accompanied by a thud. Leaping up from her stool, Alexa ran around to the other side of the pot wall. There, lying on the floor amidst about ten pots and pans was Dustin, with a stunned look on his face. "Dustin, are you alright?" Alexa asked, rushing over to help him up.

"Yeah, I'm fine; but Jack scared the living daylights out of me! Jack is the chef, and he has been a little paranoid since the…well, it doesn't matter." Dustin responded.

"What did he do?"

"He threw a knife at me, that's what!" Bending down, he picked up the kitchen knife that had barely missed his left shoulder. "Jack, you can come out now! I'm not going to hurt you!" Dustin called out. They both heard a scuffling of feet somewhere over to their right, so Dustin called out again. "Jack, it's me, Dustin! You know who I am; and I brought a friend! Her name is Alexa, and she needs to get something to eat. Can you help her, or should we go out to a restaurant?"

"If you go out to a restaurant Monsieur Dustin," Jack called out scoldingly. "And I will never give you the last slice of gooseberry pudding cake ever again! Of course I can help the girl; what do you think I am, a stable hand?" from the other end of the pot wall, Jack showed himself.

"I thought that would get you to come out from hiding." Dustin said laughing out loud.

"Monsieur, unlike you, I have a love for my job, and take it very seriously when others try to take advantage of it." Jack said accusingly.

"Oh come off it Jack, you know I was teasing."

"Along with my pride for my job, I have manners! Mademoiselle, my I introduce myself since this young lout seems to have forgotten he is a gentlemen? My name is Jack Attilio; master of the kitchens!" Jack said, giving Alexa a very elegant bow, pretending to sweep a cloak out from behind him.

Giggling, Alexa curtsied back, rather shakily, but she managed not to fall. "Why Monsieur, I'm very please to meet you! My name is Alexa, and I just got here."

Clearing his throat, Dustin cut back into their small conversation. "Jack, the food?"

"Of course, of course; just a moment! My dear, what can I serve you this fine day? Would you like some gooseberry pudding cake, or baked ice cream? Or maybe I can tempt you with some stuffed sausages!"

"Oh, my mouth is watering just from listening to my choices!" Alexa exclaimed. "You choose, I couldn't possibly!"

"Ah, I like this girl Dustin! She hasn't even tasted my food and already she knows it's good! How about a little of all?"

An hour later, Dustin pushes open the door to the ballet practice rooms to find Giry pacing the floor, obviously irritated. Noticing him, Giry rounded on him in outrage. "Where in the world have you been? That girl should have been here an hour ago! Where is she? I certainly hope that you didn't leave her to wonder around by herself while you chase after one of the ballet rats."

"She is right here Madame, and I'm terribly sorry for being late, but she had not eaten in hours, so we stopped by the kitchens to get some food into her. I'm sure that you can forgive me that." Dustin told the angry ballet teacher.

"I liked Jack; he was very nice, and curious!" Alexa piped up, to help get Dustin out of trouble.

"Well, since you have a valid excuse this time, I will let it slide. But mark my words child," Giry said, focusing on Alexa. "I do not tolerate lateness, so once you learn your way around this place, I will not tolerate you being late for practice, no matter what the excuse is! Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes ma'am." Alexa said timidly.

"Now then, I think that we should get you to the managers. They are expecting you about now, so I guess I'll just have to have my second look at you later. Well, you heard me, scoot! Out of the doorway at least if you don't know where you are going." Giry said, making showing motions with her hands.

"Ah, here is our new protégé!" Monsieur Firmin said as he saw Alexa, Dustin and Madame Giry enter the opera house office. "Madame Giry has already told us how well you dance young lady! Let's just hope that you can sing as well as you dance! If you can, I'm sure that you will have no problems fitting in here. Well, now, do you have a song prepared?"

"Sir, must I remind you again that she cannot remember anything?" Dustin spoke up.

"Ah, it seems that I have indeed forgotten that. Well, I'm sure that we can teach you something. I guess we should call Monsieur Reyer into the auditorium to teach you something to audition with." Monsieur Andre said. "Giry, would you go fetch him?"

"Of course Monsieur. I will meet you in there." Giry said, walking out of the office.

"Well, my dear, if you will follow me into the auditorium, we shall begin your audition!" Monsieur Firmin said, following Giry in leaving the room.

Once inside the auditorium, Alexa looked around in amazement. Yes, she had been found there earlier, but she had not really looked at where she was. The stage looked like it was two hundred feet wide and at least one hundred deep! That was probably an overstatement, but it was hard to tell without actually measuring it. There were two balconies, and then twenty private boxes! Ten on each of the levels of the balconies; five on either side. The seats were all mahogany wood covered in dark red velvet with gold inlay in the wood. There were white marble columns which held up the balconies, and a giant crystal chandelier hanging from the center of the ceiling. The ceiling itself was a masterpiece, because it curved slightly up into a giant dome with nothing holding it up. The mosaic on the ceiling depicted hundreds of dancers in a field of wild flowers, and men and women with their mouths open as if they are singing as the dancers dance. Perfect for an opera house.

"Beautiful isn't it?" Monsieur Andre asked, smiling at her awed expression. All Alexa could do was nod her head. "Well, shall we proceed to the piano?" Walking down the ail, Alexa noticed that it was marble as well, to match the columns.

"Ah, so this is the girl I keep hearing whispers about!" a man said, stepping out from behind the curtain, followed by Madame Giry. "Shall I just start playing songs and you pick what you think sounds pretty, or do you have something in mind?"

"Alexa, this is Monsieur Reyer, the musical direct here at the opera house." Dustin said, introducing the new man.

Firmin took over the introductions. "Monsieur Reyer, this is Alexa; she doesn't know any songs, so if you would be kind enough to teach her one?" Walking up to the man, he whispered in his ear, "She has no idea who she is, or where she is from; just thought you'd want to know."

"So I've heard! All the ballet rats are talking about her! They say that she popped out of nowhere, and knows the steps to a dance that no one has seen in over seven years!" Monsieur Reyer said.

"Aye, she does." Giry said behind him. "Shall we get on with the music lesson gentlemen, or do you want to continue talking about the poor child while she just stands there listening?"

"Good idea. Well girl, over to the piano!" Reyer said, motioning to the piano on the opposite side of the stage, and then following her. "I'm going to teach you a song from Hannibal, since you already seem to know one of the dances from that show. I'm going to start by just playing it so that you can get a feel for the notes, and then I'll teach you the word. Now then, listen closely!"

As Reyer started to play, Alexa suddenly got that feeling she had had while dancing, the feeling that someone was watching her. _Don't be ridiculous; there are five other people here, all wanting to know if you can sing!_ she thought to herself. Listening, she started humming the melody, and then out of nowhere, words popped into her head, so she started singing:

"Think of me, think of me fondly, when we've said goodbye. Remember me once in a while- please promise me you'll try. When you find that, once again, you long to take your heart back and be free- if you ever find a moment, spare a thought for me…"

"Is she singing? I thought that I could hear her when she started, but now I can't hear her at all!" Firmin exclaimed to Andre.

"I want to know how she knew the words to begin with! No one has heard that song in over twnty years! Come; let's move closer so we can here better."

Alexa was still singing, but she was so nervous for some reason, that even though she somehow knew all the words to this song, she just didn't want anyone to hear her. The only reason she kept singing was because she knew she had to. "We never said our love was evergreen or as unchanging as the sea-but if you can still remember, stop and think of me… Think of all the things we've shared and seen-don't think about the things which might have been…"

"She is amazing! It's a pity we can't get her to sing louder!" Andre said excitedly. "We need to get her to practice regularly with Reyer; maybe he can help her confidence!"

_How does she know this song? I'm one of the few who can remember it, though I was only a toddler when they performed it here. But still, why does she look so familiar? I know that I have never seen her before!_ Dustin thought to himself.

"Think of me, think of me waking, silent and resigned. Imagine me, trying to hard to put you from my mind. Recall those days, look back on all those times, think of the things we'll never do- there will never be a day, when I won't think of you… We never said our love was evergreen or as unchanging as the sea-but please promise me, that sometimes you will think of me!" Alexa finished her song, but the last part was so soft, that even Monsieur Reyer, who was right next to her, had trouble hearing it.

"Why my dear child, that was incredible! You must sing louder next time though, or else no one will ever be able to hear you in the performances! You must take lessons from someone to help your confidence, or else you will never get any main role in any of the operas." Reyer said, responding to Alexa's timid performance. "Our next rehearsal for the show we are doing, Les Miserables, will be tomorrow, so be sure to be here so we can at least get you to learn the chorus songs."

"Yes sir." Alexa said. "I don't feel very well; may I go back to my room to lie down?"

"Of course!" Giry said. "You did very well. Go rest, and we will wake you in the morning. It is late anyways. Dustin, will you help her to her rooms? Also to help her learn her way around here over the next few days. Would you mind introducing her to some of your friends, and some of the ballet rats I suppose."

"Of course Madame, it will be as you say." Dustin said, bowing his leave. "That was incredible!" he said to Alexa as they headed towards the doors.

"Thanks." Alexa said weakly.

"She reminds me of someone, but I can't figure out whom!" Reyer exclaimed after the two youths had left the auditorium.

"I couldn't agree more with you!" Firmin agreed.

"I was thinking the exact same thing!" piped up Andre.

"It will be a delightful puzzle to figure out I suppose, but one that can wait." Giry put in. "First, we must decide what to do with her! She has great talent in both dancing and singing, though she could use some encouragement in her singing."

"Yes, I agree with you Madame Giry, but we are almost ready to perform Les Miserables, she will just have to wait until the auditions for Hansel and Gretel. Until then, she must get the best help she can, because without it, her talent will go to waste!" Andre said.

"I just wish I knew where she came from, and who she really is." Reyer murmured.

_I couldn't agree more with all of the above._ a shadowed figure thought from up in the rafters.


	7. Chapter 7

I just wanted to let everyone know that this story is based off of the broadway show, not the new movie. I saw the movie for the first time the other day, and I thought it was good, but I much prefer the play, so this is based off of that. I have tried to put in breaks in between sections, but for some reason this system won't let me, so I'm terribly sorry if you get a little lost. Thanks to all of my reviewers! Ya'll are wonderful! I'll try and be better at up-dating since school is almost out, but I still have to get through exams, so I'll up-date as soon as I can. Well, I've kept you from it for too long, so on with the story...

Chapter 7

"Hey Mr. Donnelly, I brought Leslie's books like you asked." Mike said, walking into Leslie's hospital room. "I don't know what good it will do her because she can't exactly do her homework while she is in a comma."

I want her books so that I can figure out what she is doing, so I can help her when she wakes up." Mr. Donnelly said, yawning from lack of sleep.

"How is she doing; any improvement?" Mike asked.

We'll, considering she has been in a comma for a week, and you come to visited everyday, I think you can evaluate that for yourself."

"No change then. Hey, you look exhausted; why don't you go down to the cafeteria and get something to eat."

"Would you watch her for me?" Mr. Donnelly asked, and then chuckled to himself. "Well, it's not like she can go anywhere. Thanks Mike."

After Leslie's father left the room, Mike took his chair that was positioned at the side of Leslie's bed. Sighing, he put his head in his hands. "How could this happen?" he asked himself. "The stairs were too steep perhaps. I just wish you would wake up." looking up, he thought he saw her eye lashes flutter. "Leslie, are you awake?" he asked in shock. Taking her hand that was on top of the covers, he stood up to better look.

Leslie's eye lids fluttered open and she looked up at Mike. "Dustin?" she whispered, sounding perplexed.

"No, I'm Mike; I can't believe you are awake!" Mike exclaimed. "Leslie, Leslie? Leslie, wake up!" But Leslie had slipped back into her comma.

"How did you sleep?" Dustin asked Alexa as she opened her door, fully dressed a green dress with yellow pleats. The sleeves were long, but bell shaped instead of hugging the arm. The bodice was snug, but semi modestly cut.

"I had a very strange dream." Alexa replied, taking his offered arm.

"Do you want to tell me about it?" Dustin asked.

"Well, I was lying on a metal bed with white sheets. The walls of the room I was in where white, everything was white!" Alexa explained. "I was in the bed, and there was a by standing over me; but he wasn't just a boy, he looked exactly like you! I called your name, but he said his name was Mike. I don't remember anything else."

"Interesting. Did I, he, seem to know you?" Dustin asked.

"Actually, yes! He looked surprised at seeing me, and very relieved."

"Well, at least we know that someone knows you."

"There was something else, I just remembered! He called me Leslie! That name sounds vaguely familiar, but not really. Almost as if I've heard it before, but that's all." Alexa said perplexed.

"Maybe he had the wrong girl then." Dustin said shrugging. "Well, here's the kitchen. Let's see if Jack has anything ready for us to eat.

Waling into the kitchen, they found that Hack had already spread out casseroles and fruit salads and biscuits, and juices of many kinds! "He has certainly outdone himself this time." Dustin said around a mouth full of mouth watering egg, cheese, and bacon casserole. Alexa nodded her agreement, taking a bite of biscuit and jam.

"I'm so glad that you like it dear children. Shall I expect you for lunch as well?" Jack asked.

"You always see me at lunch Jack." Dustin said after he had swallowed.

"Yes, but now you have a lady friend. So, Mademoiselle Alexa, shall I be expecting your company for lunch?" Jack asked Alexa.

"Absolutely." Alexa said, after swallowing her apple juice. "I'll be back everyday if you don't mind."

"Not at all! I could use the company."

"You mean to say that I'm not company enough for you?" Mike asked, pretending to be offended.

"You, my dear boy, are nothing other than an extra mouth to feed, who comes down here just so that he can get the last piece of dessert!" Jack said, sounding as if he where scolding a child. "You have no appreciation for my talent like my new lady friend has."

Giggling, Alexa smiled at the chef. "I'm flattered Monsieur Jack, but it was Dustin's insistent nagging that got me to come down here. He had been raving over how marvelous your food is, and I must say, I agree whole heartedly!"

"There, you see?" Dustin put in. "I'm a good kid; boy; guy. Arg; now look, you've tied my tongue!

"In that case, we had better give you an incentive to untie it!" Jack said, waling over to the fire pit. Next to the flame, there was a pot; close enough to the fire to get warm, but not enough to really cook anything. "This pot contains dessert for lunch. How would you like to get a whiff of it?"

Both Alexa and Dustin got up from their stools at the counter and walked over to the hanging pot. "What in the world is in there?" Dustin asked.

"A new recipe; Crème Brule." Jack replied.

"It smells divine!" Alexa said, smelling the air over the pot. "Oh no, I'm going to be late for practice!" Alexa said, running around the kitchen. "How do I get out of here?"

Laughing, Dustin helped her to the practice rooms. Running through the doors, they found that no one was there. Walking around the try and figure out why, Dustin noticed a note hung up on the wall next to the door. "Hey Alexa, come over here. Look at the note."

Walking over, Alexa read the not out loud, "To all this may concern, meaning all ballerinas and all actors; please come to the theater as soon as you read this." Running to the door, she stopped. "Um, I don't remember how to get to the theater."

Laughing again, Dustin showed her once more to the theater. "You'll figure it out sooner or later. Until then, I'm more than happy to be your guide."

Alexa just smiled, and tried to hide her blush.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, may I have your attention please?" Monsieur Andre called out to the chattering cast. "Ah, Mademoiselle, I'm so glad that you decided to join us! Please, take a seat." he said, noticing Alexa rush in through one of the house doors. "Now that I have everyone's attention, I would like to inform everyone that the last show went splendidly well. I offer my congratulations to our diva, Madam Chani (pronounced Sean-ee). Now, as to our next opera, I know that you were all looking forwards to putting on Starlight Express, but we have changed our minds. Due too a new arrival in our cast, and upon hearing her audition, we have decided to put Hannibal on again!"

Everyone in the cast groaned, all knowing how heard it was to but that show on, since all of their relatives had been in it. "Monsieur, who is this new actor who gave you such an audition, that you decided to change the show listings?" Madam Chani asked.

"May I have your attention please?" Monsieur Firmin called, stepping up next to his partner. "Mademoiselle Alexa, would you please come up to the stage? Yes dear, I mean you, now please, come up here." The entire cast turned to see who their manager was talking too, and watched as a girl walked down the aisle and up onto the stage. "May I introduce to you your new diva, Mademoiselle Alexa? She arrived here last night, and after hearing her audition, we were just blown away! I hope that you all will make her welcome, and help her out while she is trying to learn her way around the opera house."

Everyone was silent, staring at Alexa and the managers in shock. "B-b-but she is only a child!" Madam Chani stuttered. "You are replacing me with a child? How dare you! I demand more respect! My talent deserves more respect!"

"You mean to say that my new parallel actor is a mere girl who is at best thirty years my junior? I don't think so!" Monsieur Venchenzo protested.

"Madam, Monsieur, please!" Monsieur Andre exclaimed, trying to calm the hysterical stars. "Madam, you are not being replaced! Mademoiselle Alexa is a second diva. She is young, so we can cast her in the roles that you, Madam Chani, are too old to play, or just don't fit, personality wise."

"And Monsieur Venchenzo, when Mademoiselle Alexa is playing the lead female role, we will either make you look younger, her older, or simply have someone younger play the part! Well, I think that we shall give you the rest of the day off to get acquainted with our new member. Good day." Walking off together, Andre and Firmin talked over how great the new show was going to be, and that they needed to find the old Hannibal script again.

Rushing up to the stage, Dustin congratulated Alexa. "Did they tell you that you were going to be the new diva?" he asked.

"No! I had no idea! When he called me up here, I thought he was just going to introduce me!" Alexa responded in shock.

"Well, congratulations. You deserve it! I have heard our dear Madam Chani sing many times, and I must say, you are ten times better than she is."

"Dustin, I don't think I can do it. Be the new diva I mean."

"Why? I heard you sing, you were wonderful!"

"I didn't think so. Dustin, I hate singing in front of people, so when I tried to stop singing, I couldn't! I tried, but I just couldn't! It was if someone was pulling the notes out of me, making me remember the words. I don't know how I knew that song, I just did."

"Alexa, you are shaking. Come on; let's get you some fresh air. I think that you are just shocked that you will be performing the leading role in our next opera, when you just got here."

"You don't believe me, do you?" Alexa asked him.

"I think that you are just stressed. I could tell in the room that you were uncomfortable singing in front of people, so having to get up in front of the entire cast, you are probably just over wrought. I think you just need to calm down, that's all." _Could hysteria be part of her amnesia? _he thought to himself as he led her up to the roof of the opera house. "This is my favorite spot in the entire city." Dustin told her, once they were up there.

"Why? I would think that it would be in a park or someplace like that. Or in the stables since you seem to like horses, or is it that you just like to smell like them?" Alexa teased.

"What are you talking about? I don't smell like the horses!" Dustin protested, sniffing his shirt.

"Don't worry about it; I like horses, and the scent of hay. It's cold up here! Why did you bring me up to the roof in the middle of winter, with no cloak?"

"For the view. Look out over there." he said, pointing to where the sun should rise. It couldn't be more than six thirty since the sun was not up yet.

"It's the Eiffel Tower. It's pretty and all, but I don't see anything so special about it."

"No, beyond the Eiffel Tower. Look at the river."

"I can barely see the river. What is so special about it anyways?"

"Just watch." Alexa walked over to the low wall running around the roof, and leaned on it. Dustin walked up next her and did the same. Alexa opened her mouth to say something, but Dustin shushed her, and pointed back to the river. A few second later, there was a green flash out on the water, and then the edge of the sun appeared over the water.

Alexa gasped in shock at what she had just seen. "What was that?"

"The green flash. It happens just as the sun is about to rise over the horizon, and just before it sinks below it, but you can only see it over the water. Are you glad I brought you up here now?" Dustin asked, smiling at her.

Alexa nodded; then shivered. "I'm still cold though."

"Then let's go back inside. We don't want you catching a cold just before rehearsal starts." Alexa glared at him; then smiled. Walking over to the door, Dustin tried to pull it open for her, but it wouldn't. "That's odd; I could have sworn it was unlocked."

"It's probably just stuck; pull harder." Alexa suggested. Pulling harder, Dustin still couldn't get the door free of it's frame. "Do people come up here often?"

"Not really. I guess we'll just have to wait until someone figures out we are missing, and come looking for us." Dustin said, sitting against the stone wall next to the door.

"Or we could just call for help. There are bound to be people in the streets, we can just call out to one of them." Alexa suggested, walking back over to the low wall. Leaning out over the street, she looked to see if she was right. Hearing the front door close several stories below her, she leaned out even further, trying to see if someone had gone in, or was coming out.

Loosing her balance, she started to fall over the railing screaming. Just before she went toppling over the wall, Dustin grabbed her waist and pulled her up and hugging her to him. "Are you alright?" he asked, his voice shaking almost as much as she was. "Don't do that again."

"Trust me, I won't." Alexa said, relaxing into his protective embrace. They stood there like that for several minutes until Alexa stopped shaking from her near death experience. Walking over to the only window that was out on the roof, Dustin checked to see if by chance, it was unlocked. To his relief, it was.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: **I'll explain everything at the bottome/end of the story. Enjoy!

Chapter 8

Watching Leslie still asleep in her hospital bed, Mr. Donnelley couldn't help but wonder if his only daughter was ever going to recover. He, along with everyone else, had heard the stories about comma patients never recovering, and those who did rarely ever remember what their lives had been like before the comma. Yes, there were the exceptions, which you also heard about. Just last month the newspaper headline read: "Full Recovery! A Miracle for a Comma Victim!"

Going back to looking over Leslie's school books, he almost didn't notice that his daughter had turned pail white. Only when she started shaking uncontrollably did he glance up. Seeing the petrified look on her face, he jumped from his chair, knocking all the books off his lap, lunged for the bed and hit the emergency button the nurse had shown him at the beginning her their stay at the hospital, just in case something like this happened and there wasn't a nurse in the room.

Responding immediately, a swarm of nurses flooded into the room. The head nurse, and older lady with a tinge of gray in her hair, and a great amount of bulk, charged in demanding, "What is going on in here? Has she woken up?" But taking one look at the bed, she understood and jumped into action, sending nurses flying in all directions into the hospital. One was sent to find a doctor on duty, another was sent to find mussel relaxers, another to find straps to hold Leslie down so that she didn't fall off the bed, even though the shakes weren't bad. The youngest was sent to get Mr. Donnelley out of the room since she was the one with the least experience; she started the day that Leslie was admitted into the hospital. The last nurse that wasn't ordered to stay and help with Leslie was sent to get a warm and wet towel to help sooth her, and to get the color back into her face.

Before anyone could come back though, with the exception of the lady with the towel, Leslie had calmed down and was sleeping again, just like she had been doing for the last two weeks. When the doctor got there two minutes later, she asked what had happened and how it was resolved. Finding that Leslie had just calmed down, he went to talk to Mr. Donnelley. "Sir, what where you doing when she started to spasm?" the doctor asked.

"I was just looking at her school books. You see, if she is going to miss too much school, she is going to need someone to help her catch up, so I've been trying to re-learn all of her materials." Mr. Donnelley answered.

"That's very nice of you to think that far in advanced, but did you give her anything? Say anything to her?"

"No, I was just looking at her; then went back to reading. I looked up because I heard the bed squeaking and shaking to find her pale as a ghost and shaking. She looked terrified of something!"

"I see…"

"What's wrong with her? Does this mean that she is going to wake up soon?" Mr. Donnelley asked; hope filling his eyes, along with terror in thinking that this could delay her recovery.

"I'm not sure. I don't specialize in commas; I'll have to consult her doctor. In the meantime, why don't you let one of the nurses take over for you? You look exhausted. Why don't you go home, nap for a few hours, and then come back. I bet you would greatly appreciate your own bed after sleeping here for two weeks."

"Thanks, I'll think about it." Going back into his daughter's room, he picked up the books he had knocked over, and then once more settled into his arm chair next to her bed.

_Flash_

Helping Alexa through the window, they walked back down to the stage. Since everyone had the day off, there was no one there, so they quickly made there way off into the corridor outside of the actual theater. Alexa decided to spend the rest of the day in her room, still a little shaken from her roof top experience.

To make sure that she got there all right, Dustin escorted her to her rooms, then left to go out to the stables where he was expected to do some work later on in the day. Once inside the stables, Dustin immediately broke down into shudders. _What was she thinking leaning over the wall like that? She could have gotten herself killed! What if I hadn't noticed and wasn't there in time to catch her? Where did this girl come from to give her such a lack of common sense?_

Getting to work on mucking out stalls, feeding and watering the horses, then tethering selected horses up to the merry-go-round to give them their exercise, Dustin kept toiling over what could have happened and where this strange girl had come from and why she couldn't remember a single thing.

Over the next few months, Dustin continued to ponder everything about Alexa, along with everyone else in the theater. They all knew she was good for they had now opened Hannibal to the public. Everyone agreed on that fact at least, that she could sing, even though she was very timid about her voice. The things that nobody seemed to be able to agree on though, where were she had come from, what her real name was, why she was there, why she couldn't remember anything, and why was she so shy?

Opening night, an hour before curtain call, Alexa was locked up in her dressing room, shaking from nerves. Dustin came in to wish her luck, and found that she was shaking every bit as much as the time she had almost fallen off of the roof! "Alexa, what is the matter? You have not finished getting dressed!" he said upon seeing her.

Turning to look at her friend, Alexa smiled, though very faintly. "I can't do it Dustin, I just can't!"

"Why not?" He had gotten used to the way she cut off words and conjoined them together. Though it was odd to him, he found that he sometimes did the same whenever he was around her for long periods of time. Which just happened to be just about every day.

"I'm terrified of the stage! Dustin, I'm a dancer, not a singer!" she told him for the millionth time.

"I'm not so sure of that. I know that you keep insisting that you can't sing, but honestly, would you have gotten the part that you have if you could not?"

"Well, I guess not; but I just can't do it!"

"How do you know that? Do you remember ever being on stage and freaking out?" He paused while she sat and thought.

"Well, you know perfectly well that I remember very few things about who I am, and you also know perfectly well that I do remember being a dancer."

"Yes, but just because you remember being a dancer, doesn't mean that you are not also a singer. Listen to me!" he begged her. "You can't just nock your head on something and suddenly wake up being able to sing if you had no talent in carrying a tune before hand. You can sing now, so that means that you could sing before I met you, so stop worrying about it! You'll be fine! I promise." As he said this, he pulled her off of her chair and into his arms. After giving her a hug, he stepped back and looked at her from an arm length, still holding her shoulders. "Now come on, you still have to get dressed and put your makeup on. I'll be outside the door when you are ready to go on stage. If you need me, just give a shout and I'll be in here in less than two seconds."

Smiling at him, Alexa nodded and sat back down to fix her hair. That night, although she was scared out of her mind, she proved to herself that she really could sing. The next night on the other hand, she was every bit as scared as she had been the day before, but she was determined to overcome her fear. Every performance went like this until the end of the show's running. Every night, she proved that she could do it, yet the next day, she was always just as scared as she had been; and Dustin was always there to calm her down.

A week after Hannibal closed, Andre and Firmin called everyone to the theater to make an announcement. Once everyone was there, they explained that the next show that they were going to do would be A Chorus Line. (**A/N: YES, I KNOW THAT A CHORUS LINE IS A MODERN PLAY, BUT I LOVE ALL OF THE SONGS IN THERE, SO I'M PLACING IT IN THIS TIME PERIOD INSTEAD OF OURS. PLEASE LET ME SLIDE ON THIS.) **"We will be holding auditions for the parts tomorrow. Everyone please look over the songs and parts and be prepared to sing and dance. You are dismissed."

Walking up to the stage, Alexa, along with everyone else in the company, grabbed a copy of the play and the score. Walking back to Dustin, he looked over the script and smiled. "What are you grinning about?" Alexa asked.

"Come on, let's go outside. It's really nice out there." Taking her script along with him, Dustin began to walk out to the stables. Shrugging to herself, Alexa followed. When they got to the stable, Dustin set the script on a stack of hay, then pulled out to horses and started to put tack on them. (**A/N: TACK IS THE SADDLE, BRIDLE, BIT AND STURUPS THAT ARE NEEDED IN ORDER TO RIDE. JUST IN CASE YA'LL DIDN'T KNOW)**

"Um, Dustin, I'm not exactly dressed to go riding astride." Alexa interrupted his work as he put two saddles onto the horses. Looking at her, he noticed that she was wearing a soft blue skirt with a white lace-up blouse.

"Oh, right." he said, taking one of the saddles of one of the horses and then putting a side saddle on it instead. Helping Alexa up onto her horse, a dappled mayor, he led the horses out onto the path, hopped up onto his own grey stallion, and started off towards the woods behind the theater. Although the theater was in the middle of the city, there where copses of trees places precariously throughout the city so that people could just get away from city life whenever they wanted without having to actually leave.

Ridding though the trails, Alexa noticed that Dustin had the script in his hands and was reading it, guiding his horse with his knees. "Dustin, why do you still have that?" she asked him, ridding up next to him. When she had first arrived, Dustin had taken her riding, and to his amusement, and her chagrin, she couldn't stay on to save her life! But as the weeks bore on, she had become a decent rider. Yes, she still fell of if her horse bolted into a run when she wasn't expecting it, but other than that, she usually had total control over the animal.

"What?" Dustin asked, looking up from the script. "Oh, sorry, I've never read A Chorus Line before, so I wanted to read it through."

"I've never even heard of it." Alexa commented.

"Well of course you haven't. And even if you had, you still wouldn't have." Dustin said smiling. They had gotten accustomed to teasing each other about silly things, and this just happened to be the main thing he teased her about; her lack of memory.

"Well, what's it about then?" she asked, also grinning. She didn't really mind his teasing, but she still wished that she could remember things such as her own name.

"It's about a bunch of people trying to get into this play and all the complications they've had in their lives and why they so desperately want to be in the play. But there is this one girl who used to live with the director, and she ran off to some prominent theater company to make it in the big times as a dancer. Well, she ends up coming back and tries to get into the play that her old love, the director, is putting on. He keeps telling her no, that she's too good to be in this play, but she keeps persisting because she needs a job. In the end, she gets into the show and they fall in love again. The songs are different than what people are accustomed too, but I thin that you would do wonderfully for the part of Cassie. She has this one solo that would be perfect for you."

"Another solo? Dustin, I…"

"Yes you can!" Dustin interrupted, before she could say that she couldn't. "Look what you did in Hannibal! You where wonderful! Come on; let's just have a nice ride. You can learn the longs when we get back."

When they got back, they went to one of the vacant practice rooms. Dustin sat down at the piano and started to play. "I didn't know that you could play!" Alexa exclaimed.

"Well, you didn't need my help last time because you already knew all the songs that you needed to know. Now then, come and sit next to me so that you can see the words and that I can see the notes." Alexa walked over and sat next to him on the bench. The bench wasn't very big, so they had to sit really close to each other, but neither noticed all that much. Or at least they didn't let the other know that they had noticed.

As Dustin started to play, Alexa looked at the words for the first time. "This is right in the middle to lower part of your range, so you should have no trouble hitting these notes. I'm going to play though it once so that you can hear the notes, and then I want you to sing."

"Okay, go for it." Alexa said, listening intently as he played. When he started to song over again, she did as he as instructed and sang. "Kiss today good-bye, the sweetness and the sorrow. Wish me luck, the same to you! And I can't regret, what I did for love, what I did for love! Look my eyes are dry. The gift was ours to borrow. It's as if we always knew! But I can't forget, what I did for love, what I did for love! Gone! Love is never gone! As we travel on! Loves what we'll remember. Kiss today good-bye, and point me toward tomorrow. We did what we had to do! Won't forget, can't regret, what I did for love. What I did for love! What I did for love!"

"Not bad for the first time you've seen this. Look it over once more and listen while I play. There were a few spots where you didn't quite get the right notes. Don't worry about it thought because there are a lot of strange notes in this song.

For the rest of the day they worked together on the song. Periodically, Alexa got the feeling like they were being watched again like she had had so many times since arriving at the opera house.

That night as she was getting ready bed, she had that feeling again. Looking around to make sure that no one was in the room with her, she finished dressing. As she was climbing into bed, she heard a soft click from behind her. Spinning around so fast that she almost fell over, she saw that there was indeed someone in the room with her. She was so shocked by the sudden appearance of this intruder, Alexa screamed. When the intruder made no gesture to stop her, she stopped herself and demanded, "How did you get in here? Especially without me hearing?"

"I am here for your lesson." the intruder said. "I take it that you got my note that I left you?" Seeing her puzzled and frightened face, he spoke again. "Obviously not. Mademoiselle, if you would kindly look at your vanity table, you would see a white rose with a note attached to it. Please read the note."

Stunned, she did as she was told, but making sure that she came only as close to him as possible, unsure of what to think of him and how he had come into her room unbeknownst to her. Picking up the white rose, she saw that it had a black ribbon tied to it, also attached to a piece of parchment with her name on it. Opening it, she read, _Mademoiselle Alexa, I will be coming to collect you at ten o'clock this evening for your first voice lesson. Please be ready to sing, and make sure that you tell no one of this note or our lessons. I am very secretive about whom I choose to teach for I take only the best, and if word got around about whom I was teaching, you would be given the cold shoulder and would be neglected from jealously. Once again, please be ready to leave at nine forty-five so that we will have ample time to get to the lesson and be able to start promptly at ten o'clock. Sincerely yours, O.G._

"Well, are you ready to go? We are pressing for time so we had best be going. Come along, follow me, and don't wander off, you might get lost." And with that, he stepped over to the floor length mirror hanging on her wall.

"Um, sir, who are you?" Alexa asked, still standing at her vanity table. "Where are you taking me? Why are you standing at my mirror?"

"All questions will be answered later. First, we must get out of here before anyone can here me. You did read the entire note?" She nodded her head. "They you know why no one must know I was here. Come now, let us hurry." As he spoke, he pressed on the glass and to Alexa's amazement, it slid forwards to reveal a secret passageway. As the mysterious stranger stepped through, he gestured for her to follow. As she was about to move, she heard someone banging on her door. Turning, she saw that it had been locked. _So that was the click I heard; he locked me in! _Unsure of what to do, she hesitated.

"Alexa! Alexa, I heard you scream, what's the matter? Why is your door locked? Alexa, are you okay, can you hear me?" But before she could answer, the man grabbed her around the waist and pulled her into the passageway after him. Terrified, she screamed at the top of her lungs, hoping that Dustin would be able to get inside in time to help her. To her dismay and horror, the glass swung back into place just as the door banged open, revealing Dustin standing in just his trousers, looking around the room frantically trying to find her, but he couldn't see her because the mirror was a one way window. Obviously the stranger could read her mind, or was anticipating what she was planning to do, because he clamped he other hand over her mouth before she could let out another scream. Grabbing her more firmly around her middle, he started to pull her away from her room and into the hidden passage.

_End Chapter 8_  
**  
Ballet-Girl-Forever:** thanks for the review! You'll be getting more details in the next chapter.

**Girl In Story: **thanks for the compliment! I've always loved writing, and I have finally found something that I can write about. I just wish that it was my own idea! LOL

**IndiaPyro: **sorry I haven't written in a while, I've been working on my other story because I had writers block on this one. I'll be writing more often from now on I think. I'll give my other one a break.

**A/N:** okay, soooooooo sorry this took so long to update! I just got writers block so I decided to work on my other story for a while to give me time to think about this one. Now that I have my head sort of straight again, I'll work on this one a lot more often. School is starting next week, so I won't write as often as you would like, but I'll be better about updates than I have been.

**A/N:** also, i havn't been able to separate sections, so you will be seeing a lot more of the _end chapter _ and _flash_'es


	9. Chapter 9

**_A/N: If you are letthedreamdescend or SporkGoddess, then you need to read this, if not, then you can if you want. _**Okay, thanks for the reviews! To my latest two reviewers, I'm not trying to sound hot headed or like a know-it all, but this story is fiction, hence the web site, fanFICTION. I know that my info is not correct for the time period, but the stories that I write are just for fun! I write when I have a bad day because writing calms me down, so I don't plan on doing tedious research for something that is fun for me. When and or if I ever become an actual published author, then you have my word that I will research until I have every last scrap of info correct. I don't expect everyone to believe what I say in my stories are true, because I know that they are not because this is a fictional story. But one thing that is true in my story is that high school voices CAN reach all of the notes sung in phantom, because I myself am a singer, along with all of my friends, and we all take voice lessons, so I know for a fact that if your voice is trained properly, then anyone can hit those notes with little or no strain. Not to brag, but I can. Well, sorry about that long dialog, I just needed to make that clear, and if you don't like me for saying all of this, then by all means, you don't have to finish reading my story, or review. I'll do my best to make you a little happier though so that I don't get chewed out again in the future.

Chapter 9

Mrs. Carmichael came to visit Leslie two day after her spasms to see how she was doing. To her surprise, Mike was there instead of Mr. Donnelley. "Where is her father?" she asked Mike as she walked into the room.

"He is at home sleeping Mrs. Carmichael. He asked if I would stay with her until he got back tomorrow morning." Mike told his teacher.

"Mike, you can't stay here all night, not by yourself! And you have school tomorrow, how are you going to get to school?"

"My mom said it was okay, she wrote a note to excuse my tardiness." he told her.

"Well, I guess if it's alright with you mother I don't have a say in the matter. But make sure that you don't leave this room!" Mrs. Carmichael ordered.

"Yes ma'am, I promise that I won't. Why did you need Mr. Donnelley for?"

"To see if there was any improvement, but I guess I could ask you all the same since you seem to be here every time I am plus some. Well, how is she?"

"No visible improvement, although yesterday she did have an episode of spasms that no one seems to be able to explain. They stopped without any aid to anyone also, which adds to the mystery of what is happening inside of her head. If you ask me, whatever she is dreaming about or thinks she is seeing, it is affecting physical self because nobody can get her to eat, yet she shows no signs of starvation. She also seems to be perfectly hydrated, but no one can make her drink anything. The nurses have tried to feed and water her through tubes and IVs, but she just rejects them."

"That is indeed peculiar. The spasms and the food, I've never heard of anything before, where the patient doesn't need anything but a bed. I bet none of the doctors have either."

"That is why they are all so concerned because she really is not a textbook case comma victim. I think that Mr. Donnelley is going insane trying to learn all of her work for her and worry about if she'll wake up in time for him to teach it to her. The doctor actually had him thrown out because he wouldn't leave her side, not even to feed himself! The reason I'm staying is because they won't allow too sleep here anymore. I have special permission from the principle to do so in his place as long as I don't start to slack in my work."

"Okay then, but try and get some sleep. I'll stop by tomorrow to pick you up if you want,"

"That would be great Mrs. Carmichael, but Mr. Donnelley said that he would do it. He said that he realized he was being extravagantly concerned and should take some time away from the hospital during the daylight hours so that he didn't go crazy in this all white room. If you ask me, I don't think anyone could not go whacko if they had to stay here."

Laughing, Mrs. Carmichael said her good-byes and then left to go visit Jim Donnelley. One thing that Mike had not mentioned to Mrs. Carmichael was that the day after her spasm attack, Leslie had lost a bit of color to her cheeks, and hadn't been able to get it back yet.

_Flash_

As Alexa was dragged along the corridor, she struggled with all her might which was a considerable amount considering her size. The stranger had yet revealed who he was or what he really wanted, but Alexa had a pretty good idea on what that was. He also had not told her where he was taking all; all she could discern was that they were going deep into the basements of the opera house. When Alexa had given up hope that Dustin was going to come charging down the tunnel after them, she stopped struggling. By this point, the cement beneath her feet had turned into cobble stones, most of which where slick with slime. Trying as hard as she could not to slip so that she wouldn't have to lean on the man behind her, who still had a told hold on her forearm, just to make sure she wouldn't run off.

About ten minutes after her kidnapping, they reached what appeared to be an enormous roof with a vaulted ceiling made of crude cut stone and a black marble floor; or so it appeared with only the light of a three pronged hand held candelabra that the mystery man had picked up off of the floor at the exit of the tunnel, for this room had no candle holders attached to the walls like the secret corridor had had spaced just close enough together so that you could barely see the floor.

The cobble stones ended at the edge of the great black marble floor, and Alexa was surprised to see a boat tied up to a wooden post sticking out from the marble. The man firmly put Alexa into the boat and she felt it heave from side to side as she struggled to remain upright. As she sat on the only seat at the bow of the boat, she noticed that there were ripples spreading across the marble flooring. Sticking her hand out over the side of the boat, she felt the marble, but it wasn't marble as she had thought, but water! Quickly, she looked up at the man who had just gotten into the boat. She watched as he picked up a pole that was lying on the floor of the boat that she hadn't noticed, and she watched as he shoved off from the cobble stones, and out into the dark lake with nothing to see by except for the pitiful candelabra.

In the middle of the lake, Alexa looked around and couldn't see a single thing except for herself, the, boat, the man and the candelabra with the shadows it was casting onto the lake. After a few minutes of the man pushing the boat, she felt it jolt against a wall. Turning around, she saw a small ledge about two feet above the waters surface, on which only one person at a time could stand on if you wanted to stay dry, that is if you didn't slip from all the slime that was covering it. There was also another post in which to tie to boat too. After tying the boat, the man grabbed the candelabra and stepped onto the ledge. From what Alexa could see, he seemed to be fumbling along the wall until his hands hit something which she couldn't see. To her surprise, the was suddenly slid into itself, showing to be another hidden door with anther secret passageway. This was on the other hand, was considerably brighter than the other, blinding Alexa as it opened.

Throwing up her hands to shield her eyes from the blinding light, she felt the firm hands of the mystery man grab her around her waist and lift her out of the boat and onto the ledge, shoving her into the passageway before ceiling off the doorway again. Once again, she felt his hand encircle her forearm and lead her down the hall. By this time, she could at least squint into the bright lights. Looking around, there were about three times as many candles as were in the other passageway. This hall had a white marble floor and it lead into a large circular room also with a white marble floor. This room contained a single couch with a table in front of it, two arm chairs facing the couch with a table in between them, many floor length mirrors spread all along the curved wall which had three doors which where curved just like the wall so that they blended in. There was also a great pipe organ at the far end of the room from where they stood. Around the organ where piles and piles of papers.

"Welcome to my home." the man said beside Alexa. She jumped, practically forgetting that he was still holding onto her arm because she was so dazzled by how bright the room was with all its candles, candelabras and mirrors which reflected the light and their reflections so well. Looking into one of the mirrors directly in front of her, she saw for the first time, the man who had abducted her from her room. He was very tall, over six feet tall. He was wearing a black tuxedo complete with cumber bun and bow tie. His raven black hair was slicked back and plastered with gel to hold it in place. From what she could see looking into the mirror at this distance, he had mud brown eyes. Upon his face, or at least half of it anyways, was a pure white mask that covered the entire right side of his face with the exception of a whole for his eye and an indentation for his nose to protrude from, angling down to his chin from there, skirting the edge of his lips. This mask was the only thing he wore that was white apart from his pristinely white tuxedo shirt. His skin was pale, but not colorless. Upon looking at him, fear gripped itself around Alexa's heart, utterly terrified of what she knew he was capable of doing, for she knew that he was very strong because he had been able to suppress her screams while holding her still through all of her struggling, and was able to drag her down that corridor without a second thought.

She watched as this horrifying man walked into his home, took off his coat complete with tails, and hung it on a coat rack next to the organ. She watched transfixed as he sat down on the organ bench and flip through a stack of papers piled next to him on the bench. She watched as he pulled out a packet of papers and set it on the music stand attached to the organ above the keys. She watched as he turned around to face her with a smug expression on his face that she could only imagine what he could possibly be thinking, and she didn't like it.

_End of Chapter 9_

**A/N: **I know that this chapter was really short compared to all of my others so far, but to me, this chapter was the most crucial and I needed to make it short to emphasize some key things that happened. Please review! I want to know what everyone is thinking! I know that school is starting up again, so I won't be able to update as often as you would like, but I'll do my best with my busy schedule. I'm a senior this year so I have a tone of work to do. Most likely, I'll be writing to clear my head of everything I'm doing, so I might be writing more that I think!


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